The Glenbard West girls' basketball opened up the season with a pair of convincing lopsided wins in non-conference action, over Naperville Central and West Aurora.
Glenbard West 55, Naperville Central 35
Glenbard West opened up the season against Naperville Central on Nov. 14 and they were hot right from the get go in a 55-35 victory.
In the first quarter, Sydney Nimsakont stripped the ball and scored on a fast break to go up 3-1. Julia Benjamin hopped on a loose ball for a steal and dished it to Makenna Yeager for an easy layup making it a 5-1 game. With the score 5-2, Mya Austin sank a three from the corner.
In the second quarter, the Hilltoppers went up 26-12 on a three by Yeager from a couple feet beyond the top of the key. Benjamin put the Hilltoppers up 29-15 with a three, and then hit another three at the end of the quarter to go up 34-17. In the third quarter the Hilltoppers took a 55-24 lead on a three by Ellie Frank.
Benjamin drained a pair of threes in the game, while Lauren Escalante and Austin showed off their defensive prowess with two steals apiece.
The Hilltoppers had advantages in rebounds 45-34, assists 10-7, steals 11-9 and field goal percentage at 34% to 26%.
Glenbard West 64, West Aurora 48
The Hilltoppers had a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and never looked back in a 64-48 win over West Aurora to take game two of the season on Nov. 16.
Glenbard West was up 7-0 when Benjamin sank a shot from downtown to make it a 10 point game early. West Aurora scored a pair of buckets, but then Yeager hit a three to go up 13-4. Escalante made it a 16-7 game on a fast break score coming off a steal, and then Benjamin hit another three to put the Hilltoppers up 19-9. They were up 21-9 in the first, but Kaisje Pryor nailed a three to make it a 21-12 game.
In the second quarter, Ellie Noble scored on a fast break after a steal to go up 26-18. West Aurora started to inch back into the game and made it a 32-24 game on a fast break score by Niallie Evans off a steal. With the Hilltoppers up 37-27, West Aurora was trying to decrease the lead to single digits, but Yeager had something to say about that with a blocked shot. Glenbard West went up 49-33 on a shot from deep by Austin.
Up 55-36 in the fourth, Benjamin hit a layup after a steal by Yeager to make it a 21 point lead. Benjamin then had a steal as well, leading to a layup to go up 59-38. Late in the game, Escalante drilled a three to go up 62-40, and while West Aurora had an 8-2 run to close things out, Glenbard West was able to hold on for a big win.
The Hilltoppers shot 34% and 30% from three, leading in rebounds 45-41, assists 16-10, steals 15-11 and blocks 6-2. They held West Aurora to 31% shooting and only 21% from downtown.
